Army of the Isaya
Overview The Army of the Isaya, Her Majesty's Army, is the Military of the Isayan Empire. The Army was built up very rapidly under King Aurolphar and is now in a period of transition under the new Queen, Queen Allune. The Isayan Army has a variety of armored fighting vehicles at its disposal to fill a number of different roles. Transition under Queen Allune The Isayan Military is experiencing a changing point in its history. With the ascension of Queen Allune, its new strategic objectives are unknown. It is likely that the military will be changing from an offensive, to a defensive doctrine. Queen Allune's personal objectives are much different than that of her father, King Aurolphar, who was widely condemned as a warmonger. This also places the strategic alliance with the Gondorian Council at strain, as her objectives explicitly conflict with theirs. Many experts on the Azedi Belt believe that an internal conflict within the Gondorian Council may not only be possible, but very likely, and that a secondary internal conflict within the Isayan military may be possible. While Allune was challenged to the throne by her own father, and while by law, having defeated him makes her the new queen, there are many generals who remain royal to Aurolphar's legacy, and who are considered to be just as culpable as war criminals as Aurolphar themselves. Without support, it is possible that Queen Allune attempts to oust them from the military may have to deal with a coup. There is speculation however that they have been receiving support, which is discussed below. Organization The core of the Isayan Military on their homeworld of Caiakaine is organized into a field army structure. It is organized into nine field armies commanded by nine field marshals. Each of the armies consist of twelve divisions each, and each army is roughly consisted of approximately one million troops. This model is similarly used across the Empire. The commanders of these core home world field armies are respectively, the chief military officers in charge of determining doctrine, and are largely more elite than normal units. The Isaya also has a number of field expeditionary armies, also considered to be equally elite. These forces conduct interplanetary invasions and are mobile forces. They also have considerable command authority, and they largely determine the acquisition of equipment out of necessity. Fleshwell Fleshwell is a planet under the nominal control of the Isayan Empire, but is largely independent from its influence. In addition to being inhabited by a subspecies of the Isaya, known as the Neoru due to decades of isolation. The planet is where Queen Allune spent her time in exile. As a result, the Isaya of Fleshwell, and not to mention especially the Neoru, are considerably more loyal to Queen Allune than they are to the rest of the Empire. Queen Allune was effectively the defacto head of government of Fleshwell during her time in exile. As a result of all of this, the Isayan Army has no presence on Fleshwell, and there would likely be protest if current army units were to be deployed to Fleshwell, whether under Queen Allune's orders or otherwise. However, it is unlikely that Queen Allune would order such a deployment. Without a regular army force however, Fleshwell's defense is in an uncertain state. It is unknown if the inhabitants of Fleshwell will form their own Army Units to address this. Equipment The Isayan Army is one of the larger fighting forces of the Gondorian Council. It is equal to the Sauroneye in technological capability, but surpassed by the Fraganlos. However, it is larger than both armies combined. The Isayan Army current doctrine negotiates a mixture of balanced equipment that is easy to maintain, easy to produce, and easy to transport, giving them a massive logistical edge. Their equipment generally can operate in nearly any environment; but they have no regular forces that can be deployed to vacuum environments. Tanks The Isayan Army have two tanks available at their disposal. They are the T-28 Heavy Tank, and the T-26 Medium Tank. The T-28 is the Isayan equivalent of the Sauroneye Mordor Express tank, though it is considered largely to be the superior tank, both because of its armor configuration and its turreted design. The tank was designed by taking the existing T28E1 anti-aircraft gun and making a vehicle large enough to house it. The T-28 Tank was designed primarily to fight other tanks and destroy fortifications with its heavy main gun and armor. While not as mobile as the T-26, it is still considered a front line unit. The T28E1 main gun has a fire rate of six rounds per minute, a Muzzle Velocity of 945 m/s (3,100 ft/s), which combined with its High Explosive Anti Tank ammunition, gives it the ability to defeat of the armor of any of the tanks of the Isaya or Gondorian Council's immediate threats. However, it likely wouldn't not be able to defeat the armor of the Melorsia Alliance or the Cordredium Alliance, or even the Fraganlos, should a civil war break out within the Gondorian Council. Estimates place the numbers of these tanks at around six thousand machines. The T-26 Tank, meanwhile is the primary tank of the Isaya. It is largely used as a universal fighting vehicle. Armed with a 90mm gun, it cannot penetrate the armor of the heaviest fighting vehicles the Isaya could potentially face, but it is more than able to stand toe-to-toe with most threats. However, like the T-28, the tank is woefully outclassed by the technological capabilities of the Melorsia or the Cordredium Alliances. There are concerns that if a civil war breaks out, many of these tanks will be found caught on both sides of the conflict; at which point it is impossible to predict what kind of damage they may bring. Anti-Aircraft Guns For air Defense, The Isaya employ a combination of heavy machine guns and flak guns. They also have a number of anti-aircraft missiles, but these have not seen to be deployed. Using the M3 Half Track Carriage, the Isaya have mobile anti-aircraft guns in the form of a quad mount machine gun turret and a 40mm anti-aircraft artillery piece. Their heaviest mobile anti-aircraft battery is their 90mm flak gun, which is towable. In rare circumstances, the M3 AA carriages are occasionally used in a direct fire support role, or to guard specific positions from hostile infantry; the quad machine gun turret being particularly effective in this role. The 40mm AAA cannon's high explosive fragmentation shells are very useful in shredding light vehicles apart. The M3 Half Track also has a special variant that fields the same towable 90mm anti-aircraft gun aforementioned in a direct fire role, which is a decent tank destroyer. Miscellaneous Vehicles/Support Vehicles In addition to the more regular vehicles, the Isaya have a number of unique vehicles that either have very specialized roles, or have not yet been defined as having a specific role. The two most notable examples are M9 Armored Car and the AAV. Both vehicles are armed with the same 30mm cannon, and both are lightly armored, however, both are also exceptionally mobile. The AAV is for instance completely amphibious, hence its name (Amphibious Assault Vehicle) while the M9 can obtain top speeds of 60mph. (96.5kph) The M9 Armoured Car is used for reconnaissance. Its armor is not strong enough to protect itself from any tank, and in certain places isn't even thick enough to stop heavy machine gun fire. However, given that it is as fast as it is, it can run away from what it cannot kill easily. Foreign Equipment It is rumored that the Isaya have received very advanced MBTs and other AFVs from an unknown power. There are no confirmed images from inside Isayan space to prove this, but accounts from witnesses who claim to have seen such weapons have defined vehicles that sound very reminiscent to a number of vehicles produced by the Draconian Empire. The most detailed descriptions have defined an MBT that is nearly a perfect match to the MBT70 Liberator, which has been observed fighting against the Gossip in UC territory. The tank is not used by the Draconians. It is instead used by a number of so-called client races of the Empire; members of the Empire who are not Draconian. The tank is incredibly advanced, and would rival every other tank in the Gondorian Council. Save the Fraganlos, who would still have a significant challenge fighting such tanks, the Liberator in Isaya service would be nigh invulnerable. If the Liberator is in Isaya service, it would indicate Imperial support for Queen Allune, as they are the only ones who obviously have access to the vehicle. The tank is armed with a gun much larger than any seen in the Gondorian Council, and notably, the gun is capable of firing rounds designed to penetrate armor exclusively, and with extremely high muzzle velocities, could potentially be devastating. The most powerful weapon the cannon can employ however, are guided anti-tank missiles, which have thrown Gossip armored columns into chaos.